The Gran Turismo saga will soon have its 6th edition. It's good that Polyphony did their homework. Otherwise there is a console that will suffer…
As we've advanced here, Sony was just about to announce another sequel to “the real driving simulator” Gran Turismo 6 for Playstation 3. But I honestly feared the worst. I was afraid that the Gran Turismo 6 announcement was for the next generation of Playstation and if that happened I would take a sledgehammer and break my «PS3»! Scout promise.
I confess that I am no longer enthusiastic about platform games or FPS with endless carnage. On the other hand, driving simulators continue to vibrate the “teenager with pimples” inside me. And that's why I bought Playstation 3. Just to keep playing the Gran Turismo saga. Game I've been playing with since the 1st Playstation days.
It was while playing Gran Turismo that I learned that life is more beautiful when driving a rear-wheel drive. That the front wheel drive are «boring» (ok… not all) and that the four wheel drive can be faster, but they are less fun. That tunings play an important role in the dynamics of the car and I also learned the meaning of words like toe-in, toe-out, camber and so many other terms that say more to engineers than to the console crowd.
Ena, looking back I really learned a lot about cars sitting on the couch looking at the remote control television in my hand…
Memories aside, Gran Turismo 6 seems determined to fulfill the promises that Gran Turismo 5 left unfulfilled. Despite its unmistakable quality and stunning graphics, Gran Turismo 5 was a disappointment. Firstly because the simulation levels were a few holes below the forecast and secondly because the races were too «clean» for true «petrolheads».
Not to mention the successive postponements and that horrendous “paid demo” that they decided to sell as if it were the complete game. They called it Gran Turismo Prologue. In the meantime, on the side staminé – read Microsoft… – simulators come out like “hot buns” for the X-Box console.
While X-Box customers were entitled to I don't know how many Forza’s, Sony's customers were entitled to such a "paid demo" and only one Gran Turismo. Manifestly little. Until today, without exaggeration I have already regretted 10,000 times the 400 euros I paid for the Sony console. Fortunately, the Japanese seem to want to redeem themselves.
The images of the new Gran Turismo 6 speak for themselves, the game is more beautiful than ever. But as we're all full of beautiful graphics, it's good to know that Polyphony promises simulation levels even closer to "real life". In order to achieve this realism, the producer used two great specialists in the automotive world, the Yokohama tire brand and KW Automotive, a well-known suspension brand. So it is to be expected that we find in the new «physics» engine of Gran Turismo 6 algorithms similar to those used by these brands, or at least with similar practical effects.
As for the range of cars, it will be as extensive as ever. In addition to the cars already present in the 5, the Gran Turismo 6 will add, among others, models such as the Alfa Romeo TZ3 Stradale, Alpine A110 1600S, Ferrari Dino 246 GT, KTM X-BOW R and Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3. A total of 1200 fully customizable cars with multiple tuning possibilities. The track editor debuted in Gran Turismo 5 has also been improved, allowing the player to "manufacture" their dream track.
It is often said that whoever “laughs last, laughs best” and it may be that after several years behind Microsoft when it comes to simulators, Sony will make a comeback. I sincerely hope that Gran Turismo 6 will give me many hours of fun behind the wheel, otherwise pray for my poor Playstation 3…
Text: Guilherme Ferreira da Costa